Introduction
Polystyrene is a popular plastic that’s used to make food containers, packing peanuts and the like. It’s made of styrene, which can leach into your body when heated or microwaved. However, polystyrene recycling is still in its infancy and only a few cities accept it at curbside (or even drop-off locations). Non-hazardous waste are easily to collect according to Adelaide eco bins. So what do you do with all those leftover cups? Here are some tips:
Polystyrene is commonly used in food containers, plastic utensils, packing peanuts and the like.
Polystyrene is a common material used in many products, including cups and egg cartons. Polystyrene can be made into clear, hard plastic or more flexible foam; it’s often used in packing materials and food containers such as takeout boxes. Polystyrene is not recyclable, so it ends up in landfills instead of being reused. Polystyrene is made from petroleum products and other chemicals that are not biodegradable or compostable. It takes nearly 600 years for polystyrene to break down in the environment—and even then, it does so only into smaller pieces of polystyrene!
Polystyrene can leach hazardous chemicals into your body if heated or microwaved.
You may not have heard of the chemical styrene, but it’s a chemical that may be in the polystyrene foam you eat. In fact, it’s a major component of polystyrene foam.
Polystyrene foam is used to make all kinds of products, including cups, plates and takeout containers. Yet when heated or microwaved, this material can leach hazardous chemicals into your food—including styrene. The FDA has determined that styrene is a possible human carcinogen (cancer-causing substance).
The bottom line: It’s probably not safe to heat up your leftovers in those plastic containers from the office cafeteria or use them for heating up something else in the microwave at home. If you’re concerned about this issue and want to avoid heating up your food in plastic containers as much as possible (not just with polystyrene), here are some other options:
- Use glass or ceramic dishes instead of plastic ones when heating up leftovers in the microwave;
- Use cast iron cookware for cooking on the stovetop;
- Avoid putting fresh fruits and vegetables directly into takeout containers—instead transfer them after they’ve been purchased;
Polystyrene uses a chemical called styrene to make the plastic malleable.
Styrene is a chemical used in the manufacture of polystyrene. It’s classified as a known human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which classifies substances based on their ability to cause cancer in humans. The National Toxicology Program lists styrene as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.”
In addition to its potential health effects on humans, styrene has also been shown to cause birth defects in laboratory animals.
Don’t microwave it or heat it up.
- The things on this list are not to be microwaved or heated up in any way:
- Don’t put it in the dishwasher.
- Don’t put it in the oven.
- Don’t put it in the microwave.
- Don’t put it in the freezer (unless you want to burn through your plastic and possibly damage other items).
- Don’t put it in the toaster (it will just come out as melted goo).
Conclusion
When it comes to polystyrene, the best thing you can do is avoid using it as much as possible. If you have no choice, make sure that what you do use is fully recycled and won’t harm anyone. And remember: never microwave or heat up any food containers made from this material! Click here the safest form of collecting chemical waste.